Storms damage homes in Oklahoma and Kansas. But in Houston, most power is restored

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Fast-moving storms with high winds, large hail and apparent tornadoes swept across Oklahoma and Kansas, blowing roofs off homes and blocking roads with toppled trees and downed power lines. Meanwhile, Houston has made progress in rebuilding after last week’s deadly storms.

Nearly 20 homes were damaged in western Oklahoma’s Custer County and two people were injured in Butler, state emergency officials said Sunday. Damage to a retirement home was reported in the Town of Hydro.

Wind gusts well in excess of 60 mph (about 100 km/h) were reported in many areas as the storms, which began Sunday afternoon and lasted through the night, moved eastward. In central Kansas, a wind gust of 100 mph was reported at the Salina airport, the National Weather Service said.

Jacob Schwein, of Russell, Kansas, told TV station KAKE that he spotted a funnel cloud from a storm that damaged his home and destroyed a garage where he kept his race car, trophies and a whole range of tools.

“When I left work, I saw him,” Schwein said. “I saw him coming down right over there, on the next road.”

Overturned tractor-trailers were reported in Newton and Sedgwick counties, the office said.

“Due to the damage and debris, please do not go out unless absolutely necessary!” » the town of Halstead published online.

The weather service said it received 13 reports of tornadoes from Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado on Sunday.

Schools were closed Monday in several communities that were cleaning up. More storms were forecast later today. The National Weather Service warned of an increased risk of severe storms late Monday night and early Tuesday in parts of Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska. These storms could produce large hail, gusts up to 75 mph (121 km/h), and a few tornadoes.

Parts of Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota could also see flooding with heavy rain causing rivers and streams to swell, the weather service said.

Houston-area residents hit by deadly storms last week received some good news as authorities said power was restored Sunday to the majority of the hundreds of thousands of people who had been left in the dark and without air conditioning in hot and humid weather.

Thursday’s storms left at least seven dead and paralyzed much of Houston. Thunderstorms and hurricane-force winds ravaged the city of more than 2 million people, reducing businesses and other structures to debris, uprooting trees and shattering glass from downtown skyscrapers.

More than 209,000 homes and businesses in Texas remained without power Monday, mostly in the Houston area. More than 2,400 customers were left without power in Louisiana, which was also hit by high winds and a suspected tornado.

In one Houston-area neighborhood, many residents without power went to get food, water and ice at a distribution site set up at a Boys and Girls Club. City and departmental buses were used as temporary cooling centers.

“I am a mother of three girls… My house has no electricity and I know what you all are suffering and we are here to help,” Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones said in a video released on the social platform

The weather service said residents in the Houston area should expect “sunny, warm and increasingly humid days.” High temperatures of around 90 degrees (32 Celsius) were expected this week, with heat indexes likely near 102 degrees (39 Celsius) by midweek.